A former Ellen producer is speaking out and is slamming Ellen DeGeneres in the wake of news that her long-running talk show is set to end in 2022.
Emmy Award-winning producer Hedda Muskat appeared on the Australian morning show, Sunrise, and told host Natalie Barr that she was not surprised that the DeGeneres talk show is ending. In fact, Muskat thinks “The viewers fired her” as the show’s ratings have crashed.
“Her ratings have been in the toilet for a long long time now. Her show has not been fun it has not been interesting,” Muskat said.
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“I want to give the viewers more credit. I don’t think the show’s demise is because of the viewers’ loyalty to the employees, because let’s face it; as employees we endure hardship from the workplace all the time,” Muskat said. “I think the the viewers are disappointed in the phoniness she’s been projecting as this ‘nice person.’ So I feel that the viewers feel duped, in a way, that she’s not this nice person. The viewers are not going to put up with the backstage racism that goes on and the backstage bullying that goes on. So I think the viewers have woken up, finally.”
The former Ellen producer also claimed that employees of the series were treated like lower life forms. “I was not able to have any connection with her, make any eye contact; and here’s the thing: It’s not just me, or three of us; there were over a hundred employees over the 19 years that walk away with with a sickened feeling about working there,” she said.
“As much as I loved my job as a booker and producer, I was almost relieved when I got fired,” Muskat added. “I wanted to take a shower; it was like a whole new dawn. So I don’t feel like she has the trust anymore of the viewers, and so I don’t think she is going to come back anytime soon”
DeGeneres announced this week that her day-time TV talk show will come to an end after 19 seasons. The show has suffered a decline in the ratings over the last few seasons after accusations that the star mistreats staff.
Claims of a toxic work culture and multiple accusations of sexual misconduct on the show also included allegations that a producer assaulted and harassed male staffers. Five former staffers accused executive producer Ed Glavin of misconduct. He was reportedly fired last year. Co-executive producer Jonathan Norman was accused of attempting to perform oral sex on a male employee. And executive producer and head writer Kevin Leman was accused of multiple instances of sexual misconduct.
Muskat went on to say that Ellen was never interested in human interest stories or in interviewing newsmakers. She “looked away” during pitch meetings and showed that she “despised” Muskat’s crew as they pitched such stories.
Muskat went on to slam DeGeneres for “kissing ass” with celebrities. She also said the star wasn’t able to converse with newsmakers, adding, “she really was not in a position to interview the real people because she really couldn’t carry a conversation with them.”
Muskat ultimately said she hoped that Ellen might stay away from TV for a while.
“I’d like to see her work on a farm where she can relate with all of the animals, and the pets and the dogs and the cows and the pigs, because she can relate to animals far more than she does with people,” Muskat exclaimed.
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